Google Confirms Non-ADB APK Installs Will Require Developer Registration

i love how google will basically destroy the worlds most popular mobile operating system just to protect youtube premium revenue

thats my theory too.
this is exactly why google should have been broken up.
Honestly at this point they actually likely need to be EVEN MORE strict to deal with how bad the app store is and how many scam apps are floating around.
My grand father has been given like 30 scam apks to install via email that we're just crypto ransomware basically, and he's had to reformat his phone at least 10 times this year from installing scam shit from the playstore it self too.
Both the playstore AND scammers are target android like crazy
There's basically no way to crack down on it short of what they are doing and frankly it's still not enough.
Anyone who thinks this is just Google being evil is massive fucking out of touch with the reality of what elderly and less it savvy people have to deal with. It fucking SUCKS.
And I fucking hate these changes too, but even I cant say it's enough. There's too many fucking shit bag assholes ruining all the good things.
- They should just display more warning's or safeguards, they don't have to remove it completely. There's several apps that I use that google would never let register. :(

Literally TODAY someone I know installed an application called "PDF viewer for android" that had a green adobe icon and it started wrecking absolute havoc on their phone with pop ads and redirects to scam support sites.

The AppStore is full of this shit.

We really need some money poured into the Linux mobile space because this is a terrible direction to go.

dug my pinephone out of a drawer yesterday and gave it a whirl. still pretty rough unfortunately even after updating postmarket os.
Cool being able to SSH into my phone though
- I'm still hoping they can get to a state for more general users. I really want one still. I need a Linux phone doing the old sidekick designs.
- Cool being able to SSH into my phone though
  I thought you could do that on Android?
Plain AOSP is already pretty brutal. An alternate OS is practically a non-starter. Phones aren't just web browsers and SMS.
Tap-to-pay
Including transit fares
Bank apps
RCS messaging
MFA and security apps
Work profiles
Streaming media that's not 480p
Not to mention that the camera is going to suuuuuuuuck.
Forking or improving AOSP is more viable but none of the more mainstream ROMs want to piss off Google. That's why most LineageOS forums forbid talking about defeating Play Integrity.
- Also no GPU driver, because even if the manufacturer does actually provide it, some nerd within the community will block it for not being "free software" enough and that "for light 2D applications, CPU blitter is more than enough".

Again not on custom ROMs.

(And could help the push of new alternatives os)

If it's easy to patch this out, I wonder if there will be manufacturers that will choose to do so for their official ROMs. It would be extra value for the brand, imho. A reason to choose, say, Samsung, over a Pixel phone, if Samsung were to patch this restriction out, for example. After all, they also have the Galaxy Store which is also offering apps that I doubt they'll want Google to regulate.
- I didn't read the terms but I think this is against Google terms of services, so sure you can patch this out but as a company you would suffer legal actions or would be forced to remove Google services from your devices.
  Samsung will just ask Samsung Store devs to be registered

So now 3rd party app stores need an ADB loopback to work around that.

Not hard to do, but uselessly annoying.

Installing the third party stores would be way harder than it is right now if they do that though. No way the devs of e.g. f-droid are getting a verification on an app that bypasses Google's new 'safety measures'
- I could imagine something like Sidequest happening on Android.
That's only if the apps distributed are unverified. Mind, the EU already requires app stores to document the identities of devs, but there are loopholes for Small enterprises. In 2027, manufacturers need to document the identities of their suppliers. There are still exceptions for non-profit open source projects, but that's not what Google is. Surely, no one here wants Google to avoid regulations by investing in open source.
- I believe F-Droid signs the packages it distributes so that creates a painful choke point. Revoke F-Droid's key and it will break all of F-Droid instantaneously. The only exception for F-Droid's signing is if the build is reproducible, which is a high bar for a lot of projects, and then F-Droid will use the upstream signature.
  Also, they're trying to close the ADB loophole.
I think you can already do that with shizuku and dome fdroid clients. It also makes using 3rd party appstores more convenient just in general.

I hope google fails as a whole in the near future and gets dissolved once and for all. Sick and tired of tech companies trying to be sources of authority, working with authoritarian governments, and dictating what you can and can't do.

I’ll be honest, tech got us by the balls… and they know it.
- No they don't. There are viable, open source alternatives for 99% of the software/services we use. The fact that people are not aware of it is already like half of the real problem.
I don't imagine that paradigm going away at all anytime soon or ever
- I have hope. Last time they got hit with an anti monopoly lawsuit that should've forced them to sell away chrome, but unfortunately they got bailed out. Here's hoping next time they aren't so lucky

Hold up, why all this crap... when most of the malware/infostealers is on Google Playstore... and googe itself is doing it.

It's called "eliminating competition".

The only advantage Android has over iOS is being able to install [any] software.

That's one of the big ones. Also phones with SD card slots and headphone jacks.
- If you can find one.
- Those barely exist. When I bought my Sony 5V, it was because it was like 1 of 2 or 3 new high end models that still had both the jack and an sd card slot.
*had Fuck google and every piece of shit implementing this for them.
Just about. There used to be more, but if im honest, if it works in iOS then its a decent experience most of the time.
But my custom apps makes or breaks my phone. Its so convenient.
Ill probably get a uconsole or something. Or keep my current phone til all this blows over.
- iOS is infinitely more polished than Android. It's rather stable and at least the main notification system isn't that bad for privacy.
  Edit: I want to inquire: what exactly is wrong about my comments. Android is a piece of shit. iOS is a piece of shit. iOS is smoother because Apple can engineer the parts more smoothly. Android lets you run software. I hate them both but I need to run Termux.
I was able to set custom APN settings on my Pixel to bypass the tethering block that MetroPCS puts on their cheapest plan.
There is nothing in iOS that lets you do that.
I also can't run WiFi scanners on iOS.
And Android will still have ADB sideloading. On iOS I have to run shit like Sideloadly to re-sign applications every 7 days.
If you're a true Android fan, there is still a lot to keep you on the platform.
- Literally all of this is being able to run whatever software you want

How long until they patch out getting developer mode working on you phone without a registration, requiring you to pay for it and also take a "short" AI generated crash course in app development and monetization?

Get fucked

Is this even legal in the EU? The majority of phones in the EU are Android phones so this effectively gives Google control over what apps can be installed to the majority of phones. I thought the Digital Markets Act was designed to prevent exactly this.

Google will become the exact same as apple, third party stores are technically "allowed", but requires Google's official stamp (digital signature), it's same with Apple. Its probably legal since Apple is already like this.
A corporation like Epic Games will be left alone since they can afford lawyers. An open source volunteer dev making a Youtube alternative client will get their certificates revoked under dubious "ToS Violation" claims and they won't have money to sue.
I think some recent EU proposals that make Google responsible for ensuring users can't install malicious apps is what have caused this to happen though. I could be wrong but I think I remember hearing about that.
This is essentially Google moving to do what I always thought was Apple's malicious compliance on the DMA, but which European courts seem to have accepted as just fine. I'm pretty miffed at Google for sinking to Apple's level on this.

this seems to be going the shittitest direction it could...fuck Google

ps: loving the apple simps coming out to claim iPhones aren't perfect just because you can't "sideload" lool

fuck google for spyware google play services and severe integration of them into android thiugh ^^
They literally have to be more shitty to make money. Side loading allows individuals to choose not to give their money and data to Google. Companies must grow year over year. It doesn't matter if the growth is unnecessary, imaginary line must go up. So remove standard features and then charge a premium for that feature to return, or cut pay/benefits/hours, or layoffs. Those are what's left for our corporations to grow. No new ideas. Just shit.

Ok, fuck this crap. This was the main reason to prefer Android over iOS. Going to start trying out some of the FOSS Android forks

Another example of Embrace, extend, and extinguish

Google has stopped releasing parts of android as open source and it releases some as a code dump without the modification history to make harder to use. Android forks are going to struggle to keep up.
- I wonder if any and everyone who has ever contributed code under whichever open license was used could sue the tits off google, not as a class, but thousands upon thousands of individual lawsuits, for breach of terms of said licence/contract.

Free market and openness my ass.

ThIs ApPLicAtIoN iS DaNgErOuS

This is the final push I needed to switch to GrapheneOS. Thanks Google! Now, if only I didn't have to give Google money for the Pixel so I can install GrapheneOS.

This will kill the FOSS app ecosystem regardless. Android forks of any form should be abandoned. GrapheneOS can be a decent stopgap though.
- Sorry for the downvote, but I see this take repeated here on Lemmy so often and it just makes no sense. This will not kill the FOSS app "ecosystem". Nothing whatsoever changes for FOSS ROMs like LineageOS or GrapheneOS. And as long as there are FOSS operating systems, apps will be developed for them. If anything, this could drive mainstream adoption of free/libre Android forward, re-invigorating the scene through public outcry.
  And to the people who propose fully jumping ship from Android to "Linux phones" because of Google's recent changes, you would only make the app support matter worse. As someone who daily drives both a phone with LineageOS and one with postmarketOS (mainline-ish Linux), mobile app support is endlessly worse on Linux than the fallout from Google's developer registration could ever be. That is not to say that Linux phones will not eventually get to a point of reasonable maturity, but it is way too early and frankly utterly irrational to bury AOSP Android or needlessly hate on it.
You can use LineageOS on your existing non-pixel android phone, instead of purchasing a pixel.

Google hit by EU lawsuit in 3.. 2.. 1..

EU wants to read all your online communications so, no, they will not be saving you from this. This furthers that goal
- Luckily it's not the same body in the EU who's in charge of enforcing AND setting up proposals.
  The EU is not a "one opinion" government body.
- Well, some countries in the EU are pushing for this on EU level.
- Big gov and big corp are essentially the same thing. And while the people jump ship to be at the mercy of the "better side", the elites are sharing a cocktail in secret.
  The scale still remains, however one side tilted more so than the other.
- how convenient, GOOGLE wants all your data too.
This is basically the same as Apple's notarization scheme for direct app installation on iOS in the EU. I do not believe the EU has sued Apple over that yet, and they've had plenty of time to do so.
- They usually sue if the practice doesnt stop for over a year. They do send warnings before anything official comes out FYI.
  But I dont know if they want to do anything though. No one but them and Apple knows for sure.
The law EU created looks like it has a loophole which allows manufacturer to prescreen side loaded apps (like what? What's the point of sideloading then?) it is what Apple exploited and Google is going the same direction.
A few months ago? Yeah, I'd be with you. Today? It's the wet dream of the current EU leads. Closed devices, where they can run spyware without risk of it being hindered by custom OS with proper permissions and process separations? So good. For them.
This is forced by EU regulations. I doubt Google would have introduced this on its own. If they wanted to do this, then why wait until forced?

Can someone "redpilled by corporate" explain me how this policy actually increase security?

It's trivial for a malware developer to pay $25 with a stolen card and a stolen id

Look at the "verified" bots on xitter, they didn't solve the bots problem, rather just monetized it

It's a lie. Google just wants control.
The vast majority of malware isn't delivered via play store because of the existing measures and protections they have. Same reason you see very little app-store-based malware on iOS. DISCLAIMER: YES MALWARE EXISTS ON APPLE HARDWARE PLEASE DON'T SHOUT AT ME. Talking specifically about anything installed via first party stores on both platforms.
Their main issue is this: dumb people install apks from spurious website and infect their phones. The least controllable and most pervasive factor here is the intelligence and knowledge of the user which cannot be controlled for by Google. So by eliminating the ability to exploit this entirely, it will eliminate that specific vector.
It's a sledgehammer solution that naturally comes with many downsides like disrupting intelligent and knowledgeable users that just want to hack around with FOSS and such.
Google is relying on It being too expensive for malware creators to have to guide each individual user through adb installation and usage process just to get access to their phone. Most scammers only do that level of interaction to extract actual cash/gift cards from the target.
I am personally and directly affected by their decision in many negative ways, but I'm not so dense as to not understand why they're doing it.
/corpodronespeak
EDIT: bots help Xitter maintain inflated usage figures which justify people's jobs, share prices, etc. Bots are a feature, not a bug.
- yes, of course malware is distributed via apk.
  But what's the difference between:
  malware that is signed anonymously and then, when its signature is identified, it's removed via play protect
  malware that is signed with a stolen identity and then, when its signature is identified, it's removed via play protect
  ?
  Isn't exactly the same stuff? Or there's someone that is actually thinking that criminals will use their real ID card for the verification?
  Does not change anything for malware distribution, except bother them for a dozen minutes meanwhile they "verify" their stolen ID
- Their main issue is this: dumb people install apks from spurious website
  No they don't. Most people don't even know what an apk even is.
It's not about stopping malware; it's about being able to act on malware.
Making a new account with a new phone number and new credit card is a minor barrier to entry.
That said, it's a cool story, but I think they're looking to stop vanced style patching.
Corporate needs to have somebody to sue in case of a policy violation. Very especially those debloated apps that float around the web - they need to ensure they have a physical person to pin the blame to in court.
Google is doing this to comply with EU regulations supposed to increase security. Now imagine that Google was pushing back against this instead of complying. As per usual, Lemmy would be up in arms against Google for failing to protect people's data and not complying with our laws and culture. You'd be downvoted to oblivion for asked that question and called a corporate bootlicker.
I think these rules come from German legal culture, which traditionally has a strong need to control information exchange and processing.
- the way they originally phrased it, it was seemingly because of authoritarian governments like singapore wanting to exert more control (hey google, can you revoke the certificate or doxx this dev for us?) and then they realized that they could make more money if they extended this block worldwide
I presume they are implying that the play store review process will catch compromised apps? Not likely considering how many dodgy apps have been found on play store. It's just another controlling act.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sundar_Pichai

i bailed on android to join my family on ios, and i hate it. now i cant even go back comfortably. so... linux phones?

I'm not sure why you did that. android still gives you more freedom and is still better
- For now, yes. But time is running out and of course Apple is no solution. Only fools would go to apple now.
- Also: Torrent clients are available on Google Play (for now, at least), Apple never allowed them.
it would be nice
- I miss my N900 every day.

We need better Mobile Linux / Android distros

Calling it already, one of the most popular apps around will be a wrapper around ADB in order to install new apps - maybe Shizuku or Sui?

Shizuku?
EDIT: I didn't notice it was mentioned already. XDD
- App that mimics wireless debugging device and allows you to access ADB functionality locally. Widely used to perform actions that are normally unavailable on non-rooted devices. Some apps rely on functionality provided by Shizuku - for example, Canta, which allows you to delete any app, including undeletable pre-installed ones.
- If Fdriod could incorporate this it will not affect them.

What did you expect? Did you think we were living in a fairy tale and could build a better world?

I use LineageOS. Will this affect me? I'm getting unclear answers. Someone told me that the apps will be forced to verify the OS.

This will not affect you directly. This is implemented via Google Play Services, any phone not running that will not verify signatures.
- hmm, I added GApps to my LineageOS, which includes Google Play Services.

So, will an app like this

https://codeberg.org/muntashir/AppManager

which uses (w)adb, be able to install apk as I currently do?

Or will they also fuck this up ?

And their flagship costs more than the iPhone 17 Pro but has performance closer to the iPhone 11 and they still sell your data off the back end.

Android was a fine alternative to iOS for a minute… like in 2012 with the Galaxy S3 and Jellybean. Now? I don’t get it. You pay more, you get less, all because — what? Gmail was once cool?

They took your headphone jack. They took your memory card slot. They took your back button. (Anyone remember the menu button?) Now they’re taking sideloading.

What is even the point of Android? It isn’t freedom. I see it as capitulation to Big Data.

Imo, the Android experience is far better than iOS. I have no love for either Google or Apple, but I would rather use a slower older Android phone over any iPhone.
- What about it is better? Honest question, from someone who uses both.
  So yeah, on Android you can do a little more with home screen customisation. It used to be a lot more — I can't believe it took Apple how many years to figure out how to place an icon to the right of or below an open space? It's closer now, they both steal from each other, but you can do a lot more. My Android phone is partly a cosplay prop: it's a real-life NookPhone, from Animal Crossing. My icons are huge, they're the ones from the game, but they open real apps, and they're in a 3x3 grid. Definitely can't do that on iOS. But I don't need that on my daily driver. And many people say — and I'm inclined to agree — that when an app is on both, it's better on iOS due to fewer hardware configurations to support.
  Also, we have Delta, the emulator that backs everything up to, ironically, Google Drive. So I can show you this app on my iPhone. I can also AirDrop you any game I have. Long press, share, AirDrop, find your iPhone, you open it with the same app, you got it now. Super easy. But I can also uninstall the app, it removes all the files and whatnot. I can go into Files, double check all my games are gone. Saves, all of it. Then I reinstall it. Nothing... but as soon as I sign into Google Drive, it re-downloads everything. I just wish the emulator ran on the Mac, too — I'd have cross-device sync. Also, the emulator is Nintendo only, no PlayStation, no Sega, nothing like that.
  And then the privacy issue. I think it's wild so few people care about their private information being sold. Then again, Facebook, TikTok, and others are huge. So I might be the outlier caring about that. But I still do.
- Are you high?
And all those things were "taken" because they followed apple's lead who took all those things first. Losing sideload capability is yet another fallow the leader act they're doing to be like apple.
As for more expensive, disagree there. That's only the case if you go with high end sansung phones, but you can get android phones for much cheaper with still decent hardware, and it (currently) can do all the things apple does. You cant buy a cheaper apple 17 then the 2 models they give you. Also the hardware differences are so minor between Samsung and Apple, its laughable to call one "better" so your ppst really comes off like a fanboy talking about something you dont understand.
- Actually, the first phone to do a lot of things was actually an Android — good and bad! The first fingerprint reader, I think may have been the Motorola Bionic? But it was like an electric razor, it had these things you roll your finger across. It was weird. Not like what we have now. Likewise, I'm pretty sure an Android phone was the first one to pull the headphone jack. It was just because Apple did it right when they brought out the AirPods that people cried foul (rightly so). Memory card? Apple never supported them (they're too slow), and Android phones famously didn't support them... I think the Nexus phones? Pixel too. I don't think any Google-branded phone had a memory card slot.
  More expensive does include the foldables, and you can't say they don't count because they exist. I wouldn't count the diamond-crusted Android phones, those are super limited edition. But anyone can go buy a fold or a flip, so they have to be considered. Right now the top iPhone costs $2000 in the US. It's a 2TB iPhone 17 Pro Max. Android gets higher, albeit with folds, but it does get higher, and the performance isn't any better.
  As far as Samsung specifically: the chip in the Galaxy S25 is faster than the one in the iPhone 16 Pro/Max, but it also loses more power when it throttles for getting too hot. That really only means anything in high-end gaming, though. For day-to-day usage the Samsung will clock higher. It's only going to get 3-4 years of support though, if that, and they still sell your private information. You can't even use Samsung Health without agreeing to let them sell your private medical data (whatever you put in it). So no, it can't do everything an iPhone can do. It can't keep your medical information private, which is enshrined in law in many countries, but if you agree to let them sell it, that goes out the window. Why would you give that up when you don't have to?
Delusional apple fanboy.
I don't need a my phone to be a 'flagship'. I am not an influencer. I also wonder what loads are you running on a phone that you meet performance issues.
You can get an android with microSD and 3.5mm jack for 250€.
You can still run all the software you want. Adblockers, torrent clients, emulators, even... browsers! There will still be new android phones that won't suffer those limitations. They will also be cheaper than iphones.
Don't get me wrong android is in a bad trajectory, it's true that's Google has been enshitificating as much as it can get away with. It's still light years ahead of iOS.
If anybody cares for privacy or control of their devices, saving Android, even in alternative versions/vendors, is a much more viable option than switching to iPhone.
Cost. You can get performant brand new phones for $200 that will last you 2+ years
OS-wide adblock. I cannot comprehend how iOS users live with out it. I see my GF using her phone and every other scroll of something is an ad.
Some other sailing-of-the-seas things that I'm not comfortable posting online about, but it saves me a lot of money on subscriptions from big corporations.
- You got me there. I can probably get a gently used iPhone from a generation or two back and maybe get down to $300, but I dunno about $200. You're 100% right on that one, and more to the point, mid-range Android isn't nearly as bad as it used to be. One of the biggest secrets in mobile is that performance has plateaued.
  You can only block ads OS-wide on Android if you're rooted. AdAway (and I suppose others like it) edit the HOSTS file which trumps DNS. DNS is what iPhone users use, and what unrooted Android users use. The problem with DNS isn't that it doesn't work — it does — it's that bad actors can tunnel around it. So Google, great example, the app I mean, has its own DNS. They have various reasons but what it boils down to is "we can tunnel around your ad blocker." They definitely do this on iOS. They probably do it on Android. But editing HOSTS can beat that. And no, I don't get ads on YouTube, either — but I do not use the app. You can, if you're on Android and you're rooted and you have a good HOSTS file. I can block YouTube ads with Safari and uBlock Origin (yeah, we got it now) but it's just DNS. I will concede that the best way to browse on a phone is Firefox for Android with uBlock Origin. Us iPhone users wish we had that. We don't. But we can get close. Really, the only ads I see are in the App Store. It's become a cesspool of shit.
  I don't sail on my phone. I've tried, a few things don't work. I have computers for that. I have a good/decent emulator that works good. As far as movies, music, shows, audiobooks, I have a Plex server and my iPhone has no problem accessing that. I bet you could use an Android phone as a Plex server though. Not that I'd want to. But you probably could. Maybe. Like with root? I dunno. But anything on my iPhone (not counting Plex stuff), I can get on your Android phone. And vice-versa. I mean, not to use your Android phone as an example, that's kinda hostile, I mean if I have an iPhone in one hand and an Android phone in the other, I got no problem getting stuff from one to the other. Either way. Best if they're on the same WiFi, but I can make one a hotspot in a pinch.
They took your headphone jack.
Are we talking the nebulous They, the royal They, or do you mean "Android took your headphone jack?" Because uhh,
https://appleinsider.com/articles/22/08/17/seven-years-later-apple-was-right-to-kill-off-the-35mm-headphone-jack
google largely gave up on the pixel phones, in terms of development since pixel 5, now its just all AI invesment into to all those phones since, with slightly better features, to keep the fans happy.

So I guess I'm going to have to learn to use ADB.

Easy but annoying.
I believe side loaders for the meta quest already use it under the hood. maybe there's potential to make a side loading app store

I normally use ADB anyway, but wouldn’t surprise me if that becomes more locked down as well. For example, I believe Meta Quest requires a developer account with a credit card attached to even put it in developer mode, and I worry that kind of bullshit will become the norm.

You don't need a credit card for a dev account. You do, however, need to have a "business" attached. Luckily, that business they're asking for doesn't need to be verified, so it can be just a random string of letters.
Still bs that you have to go through all of that just to install apps you want.

Ok fine...

Man, I miss my jailbroken iPhone 5.

It was like having your cake and eating it, and somehow its stock (much less tweaked) UI is less clunky than whatever TF Apple has done to my discount 16. Maybe it’s because I was using Android in between, but still…

The UI in iOS 26 looks like Windows Aero on Crack, and not in a good way...

Found the 91 Google employees

Hope they would be sued in America and Europe for it. I can't believe it will be OK... And can't believe they clearly think it will be.

I was about to switch to android but ended up with another iPhone because of Google killing the only reasons to use android.

I like my air but I’m still waiting for what I really want. A viable Linux phone.

Google is building a walled garden, so I went with this other walled garden instead.
You people have zero logical consistency and I've seen so many such comments on reddit. I want to pick your brain and figure out how you can roll over THAT easily for corpos.
- Or maybe “if I have to be trapped in a walled garden, why would I pick Google’s shitty one?”
- I was looking at a pixel fold running grapheneOS. Google is making changes that I dislike and realistically cannot avoid so why jump ship from my existing walled garden into one that’s just now starting to from, with even worse privacy and a business model totally dependent on violating as much of your privacy as possible?
  The future of graphene and other third party roms is uncertain but I needed to upgrade my phone. My screen was cracked but usable but once I remove it to replace the battery I won’t be able to reinstall the single piece of glass and by that point I’m halfway to a new phone anyway.
  For now, I’m okay with my air, but I know me and Apple are on not going to be together long term. I’m pulling off the cloud and breaking up dependancies one by one so, but as far as phones go, there isn’t a viable option quite yet. It’s definitely coming but it’s not here yet.
  We need to break free from both Apple AND Google. Borrowing from Google to make another rom but still being dependent on them to keep your project alive and supported is no longer an option. We need a clean break away from them.
  I can foresee a phone-like pocket computer running Linux that doesn’t have cellular capabilities at all. American cell phone companies weren’t crazy about supporting windows phone a many even blocked them from joining their networks. We are starting to see the same shit with Linux phones now. But most people don’t need data everywhere. There’s wifi where people like me actually use it. And so I can see a market for a voip service for phones that lets you use them like mobile landlines. For simple texts, a network of Lora packet radios would suffice and reticulum seems to be up the task of serving that need.
  Costs are increasing and our dependance on these devices are changing so not every problem we have with Linux phones will need to be solved by the time that such devices get off the ground. We have options for tomorrow.
  But today, the iPhone air was fine for me.
A viable Linux phone.
I am eyeing the Jolla C2. Gonna use GrapheneOS for as long as possible, but if all else fails I will use the shittiest Linux phone over this Google/Apple nightmare.

How does this affect termux? Is it going to die or is it only going to be able to have packages that are from registered developers?

That's actually a really interesting question.
I understand that Apple takes issue with packages that can themselves "take packages". But historically, I don't believe that Google has. Of course, Google also hasn't done the registration thing historically, either.
Termux is already available on the Play Store, so I imagine it won't be an issue. Sideloading will still be possible, it just requires developers give Google their private information (which is fucking stupid) but you already have to do that to be on the Play Store, so I don't see why Google wouldn't verify the Termux team.
- look at it from the pessimist's point of view, they could have killed side loading too!
- Yeah I really hope they wont ask termux packages or apps installed through termux to also be verified. Termux is on the play store but it's not the real version. Termux devs have the actual version sideloaded.

Thankfully I have root, I'll just simply hook into it runtime via Xposed to bypass this nonsense.

Seriously anyone who doesn't have root on their Android devices these days and age, well may Google have mercy on you lol

Are you certain you'll be able to do this? Do you have more info?
- Recent AOSP repo added lines of code to Package Installer to handle enforcing restricting whether Package Installer installs an APK file or not based on dev signatures, as well as denying installation if internet isn't available so it can't contact Google's servers for dev signature verification.
  So this is enforced by Package Installer, which is already how Google enforces their ridiculous minimal SDK version requirement for installing APK packages, as well as for blocking app update with an APK package with mismatched signature or blocking downgrading an existing app with an APK package, which I already have bypassed via Xposed this way.
  Besides, rooting gives YOU total control over your own device like when you have sudo on Linux, even if Google tries some new BS there will be a way to counter it when you have root
The crux of the issue is not as many people will do this so app devs will be less inclined to release the good OSS
- And not as many people ever even care about doing this is exactly how we got to this point.
Don't say that on XDA. Half the people there will say you don't actually need root to do what you want and the other half will demand you justify why you specifically need root before they even entertain the idea that having full privileges on your own fucking hardware is a valid desire.
- XDA is dead, and you just described one of the symptoms of a forum being dead.
  That said there are still a small amount of people posting detailed posts for rooting Xperia phones, for how to flash OS updates with unlocked bootloader without losing your user data, for how to bypass carrier restrictions to get international model to work with the 5G bands in the US via build.conf edit and baseband flashing, etc. There are perks of a community being small and niche, and I guess not everyone is brained washed by Samsung's propaganda they use to justify permanently locked bootloader on their phones lol

but directly installing apks on the phone should still be possible then, right.... riiiight?

wireless debugging, you can connect the phone to itself via a wifi network, then send adb commands to itself. loopholes lol
- Wait... what? Tell us more details...
- i somehow skipped the "non-" part of the headline. thanks for the info though - when i came across this a couple of months ago, i couldn't really think of any good use for it